Building a Brand Within a Brand: How The Rochambeau Club Set the Stage for Racquet Rose

Not every brand launch needs to follow the same tired formula. Splashy Instagram ads, influencer partnerships and a handful of PR write-ups are predictable. It also doesn’t guarantee anyone will care. The truth is, most brands get lost in the noise because they don’t give people something to believe in.

That’s what makes The Rochambeau Club so fascinating. On the surface, it looks like an exclusive racquet and social club tucked away in the French Riviera, with all the trappings of old-money elegance. But in reality? It doesn’t exist. It’s a carefully orchestrated illusion designed to give Racquet Rosé an identity beyond just another bottle of wine. Spoiler alert: it works.

This article breaks down why Joe Bullmore and Chris Seddon took such an unconventional approach and how they made it feel so real. We’ll look at the problem they were up against, the strategic choices that made the club stand out, and where they could take it next.

The Exclusive Club That Doesn’t Exist

The Rochambeau Club (TRC) is not what it seems at first glance. On the surface, it looks like an exclusive sports and racquet club tucked away in the French Riviera. The kind of place where well-heeled members sip rosé after a game of doubles. But here’s the twist, it doesn’t actually exist.

The club is a carefully crafted brand narrative designed to set the stage for Racquet Rosé, a rosé inspired by the elegance of the sport. Its founders, Joe Bullmore and Chris Seddon, built an entire world around it, complete with a website, coaching programmes, and even a club restaurant. It plays on nostalgia, with visuals that bring to mind 90s Ralph Lauren ads and the golden age of country club culture.

But why go to such lengths? Because behind every great brand is a compelling story. And TRC is a masterclass in how to make people want to be part of one.

But before you cast your judgment on Joe and Chris’s go-to-market strategy for Racquet Rosé, it might be worthwhile to understand the reason why they felt the need to launch TRC first.

Drowning in a Sea of Rosé

The rosé wine market is packed. Every year, new bottles hit the shelves, each hoping to carve out a space in an already crowded scene.

In 2022, the global rosé market was worth around $3.2 billion, and it’s expected to grow to $5.2 billion by 2030. That kind of growth brings more players into the game, making it even harder for a new brand to stand out. And while demand is rising, the U.S. market tells a different story, leading French rosé brands saw a 3% decline in 2023. Even the giants like Whispering Angel took a hit. The signs of saturation are hard to ignore.

For most new rosé brands, the playbook looks familiar. Get stocked in retail stores, build a social media following, and show up at wine festivals. But herein lies the problem: when everyone follows the same formula, brands begin to blend. It’s easy to get lost in the sea of pastel labels and provence-inspired visual identity.

That’s why Joe and Chris knew they needed something different. Instead of taking the usual route, they built TRC. Not just a brand, but a world, one that made Racquet Rosé feel like more than just another bottle on the shelf. By blending their product with a rich, carefully crafted story, they created an aspirational lifestyle that resonated with people looking for something more than just a drink.

How The Rochambeau Club Made Fiction Feel Familiar

TRC pulled off something that most brands wouldn’t dare attempt. Instead of launching Racquet Rosé with the usual PR release and Instagram ads, they went all in on a fictional yet oddly believable members’ club. It worked because they committed to the bit. But beyond that, everything looked and felt like it belonged.

Commitment to the Act

For most brands, creating a Trojan horse like this might seem misleading, maybe even a little fraudulent. But that’s not what happened here. What makes TRC different is how well it understands the world it’s pretending to be a part of. Private members’ clubs have a certain rhythm, a way they operate, a set of unspoken rules. Instead of faking it, Joe and Chris respected every single touchpoint.

The website? It has sections for memberships, coaching, a club restaurant, even a shop for merchandise. The club menu? It has pricing and operating hours, which is hilarious when you remember there’s no physical club to begin with. This level of detail is what makes the whole thing feel so real. It’s not pretentious. It’s familiar, like a club that could actually exist (just somewhere in a parallel universe).

Consistent Visual Direction

Then there’s the photography. Every image, from their styled stock to their own product shots, follows a consistent visual direction. Nothing looks out of place because the look and feel has been defined from the start. That’s where a lot of brands slip up, they don’t know what they’re supposed to look like, so they jump between styles, hoping something sticks. A problem that is compounded by the simultaneous democratisation of design with Canva and the over reliance on templates.

Some people have been crying for the death of “the millennial brand”, criticising the overly curated look of brands. But the truth is, humans crave consistency. It’s wired into us. We trust what feels familiar, what makes sense across different contexts. TRC’s visuals don’t just look good, they reinforce the world they’ve built.

Joe and Chris have done something remarkable with TRC. They’ve built an entire brand world online, one that feels so immersive that people forget it’s fictional. But here’s the thing, no matter how well-executed their digital presence is, it’s still just that: digital. Right now, they’re building a following, not a community. If they want Racquet Rosé to have lasting cultural relevance, they need to bring their brand IRL.

That’s the challenge for brands today. Digital and physical shouldn’t exist in isolation, they need to work together. TRC has mastered the online experience, but the next step is bridging the gap between URL and IRL.

At the time of writing, TRC’s average number of comments per post is 5.5. That puts their estimated engagement rate at just 0.03%. A sign that while people are watching, they’re not necessarily participating. The brand has intrigue, but intrigue alone doesn’t create advocates.

The Missing Piece: IRL Activations

For all its strengths, TRC exists in a vacuum. The concept is rich, the storytelling is sharp, but without a physical space for people to gather, interact, and experience the brand firsthand, there’s a limit to how deep that connection can go. That’s the difference between an audience and a community.

Think about how powerful it would be if TRC leaned more into IRL activations (pop-up clubhouses, tennis tournaments, or intimate Racquet Rosé tastings) in settings that match the world they’ve built. It wouldn’t just reinforce the brand’s story, it would turn passive followers into engaged participants.

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The Rochambeau Club is a masterclass of compelling brand narrative. Joe and Chris built something that feels real. That’s the power of narrative when it’s done well. But while they’ve mastered the digital world, there’s still a missing piece.

A brand isn't just about being seen, it's about being experienced. Right now, TRC has intrigue, but intrigue alone won't turn followers into brand advocates. IRL activations could make the vibes expressed on Instagram more tangible.

At KOVA, we believe great branding exists at the intersection of digital and physical. A brand should feel just as compelling in an Instagram post as it does IRL. That’s why our approach blends both worlds, crafting brand experiences that are immersive and adaptable. If you’re looking to create a brand that isn’t just seen but truly felt, let’s talk.